


Gummy Worms

by SteamyLego (RoakAssault)



Series: Let's Get Andrew and Neil High Since I Can't Right Now [1]
Category: All For The Game, the foxhole court
Genre: All For The Game - Freeform, Concerts, Fluff, House Party, In Universe, Kissing, M/M, Recreational Drug Use, Smoking, Weed, edibles, its cute i swear, the foxhole court - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-07-15
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:15:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24669001
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoakAssault/pseuds/SteamyLego
Summary: Neil and Andrew eat a fuck ton of edibles at a high school party. This is how they behave.OR two edgy boys let their guard down when they eat some devils lettuce
Relationships: Andrew Minyard/Neil Josten, Andrew/Neil
Series: Let's Get Andrew and Neil High Since I Can't Right Now [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1868845
Comments: 18
Kudos: 393





	1. Chapter 1

Roland pushed a third shot in Neil’s direction with an expectant look after passing the usual tray of drinks off to Andrew. Neil rolled his eyes and wondered how the bartender- and his teammates, for that matter- never seemed to tire of trying to get him past tipsy. Neil just sighed and brushed the shot to the side enough to indicate that he was relinquishing it to Andrew. 

“Seriously? I thought we were making progress with this one.” Roland asked playfully, looking to Andrew for answers. 

Andrew didn’t look towards either of them and spoke while rearranging the drinks in that same intricate pattern that he always did. “You know I’ll watch you if you want it, right?” he directed at Neil. 

“Someone needs to be DD, remember?” Neil threw out as an excuse. Truth be told, he just wasn’t interested in getting drunk tonight. It might have been out of habit, but he still could only see scotch, whiskey and anything else that burned as nothing but anaesthetic after an especially brutal attack back when his mother was still alive. The painful association probably didn’t help much in changing his disinterest either. 

Without questioning further, Andrew simply knocked back the liquor before picking up the tray and turning back towards the Fox’s table, Neil following closely behind. Roland just shook his head and began wiping down the bar, forgetting to offer Neil a soda. 

“Just in time,” Aaron said as the two set the drinks down on the tall table. “I’m way too sober to listen to anymore of Nicky’s dream wedding details.”

“Jeez, you don’t have to kiss my ass to get best man- consider the job yours,” Nicky replied with a smirk, too intoxicated to let Aaron’s mood ruin his. Aaron just scowled and began gulping down his gin and tonic, true to his word. 

Neil watched Andrew slowly sipping from his glass and let the feeling of comfort flood his chest. They had played a great game tonight. Their homecoming had ended up being against the Beckinridge jackals again and the 11-4 victory felt quite nice, especially since each veteran fox definitely recalled how cruel the losing team’s playing style had been last year. A celebration was well in order.

The table’s makeup made this night just like last fall, when the monsters had purposefully separated themselves from the rest of the team- though, this time, the rest of the team had known they were invited before they’d made other plans. It, of course, wouldn’t hurt to bond with the new freshman players but Neil figured Matt and Dan would be a bit more personable than Andrew’s lot at that task anyway. 

“What do you think, queen?” Nicky directed at Kevin, who seemed unimpressed by the nickname. “Should the theme be more ‘Garden Party’ or ‘Bohemian’?”

“I find it interesting that you think I know what that means,” Kevin said coldly. Neil idly wondered why the group bothered getting drunk when it seemed to do nothing for their short tempers.

Nicky just giggled, used to the cold responses. “Andrew? Any input?”

Andrew surprised everyone by actually answering. “Bohemian. Garden Party is too gay.” 

Nicky nearly screeched, smacking his palm on the table as Neil watched a stranger approaching from the direction of the bar. He about matched Kevin’s height and had piercing green eyes. 

“Aaron?” the stranger called out with a friendly grin. Aaron looked across Kevin and Nicky at the voice with the rest of the table and Neil watched a look of recognition wash over his face. His expression softened into something Neil had only seen when he was around Katelyn. 

“Jason,” Aaron said, moving around to meet the man. ‘Jason’ laughed as they embraced in a quick hug. Neil glanced at Andrew for any kind of telling reaction and only saw the familiar “can I trust you” look, similar to how a loyal pitbull might watch over its owner. 

Aaron didn’t keep the rest in the dark for too long. “Jason was on my high school exy team,” he explained, Jason’s eyes darting between the different members at the table. 

“It’s so cool to meet you guys! No need to introduce yourselves- I’ve been following y'all's team since last season. It’s a trip seeing Aaron out there taking down teams like Edgar Allen. Makes my heart swell with pride,” Jason said, putting a hand on his chest. 

“Aw, Aaron had friends in high school? I didn’t know you had it in you, champ!” Nicky said in a mockingly sweet voice. Jason chuckled as Aaron gave his cousin the finger. 

“You single?” Nicky added, twirling a cocktail umbrella between his fingers. 

“Weren’t you just planning your wedding?” Kevin said accusingly.

“Shhhh,” Nicky said, placing his hands over Kevin’s ears and promptly getting pushed away. “Asking for a friend.”

“Are you still playing?” Aaron asked before Nicky could get another word out. 

“Just intramural,” Jason said, keeping his warm smile despite the mostly blank looks by the foxes who didn’t know how to bother with polite conversation. “I’m studying biology at Florida State- just home for the weekend.

“You know what,” he said, crossing his arms and wagging a finger, “I was actually just about to head to Heath’s house. He’s the captain of our old team- a senior now, I think,” he added for the table. 

“There’s a party- bands playing in the basement and everything. He’d be stoked to see you, dude. And all of you guys,” he said, gesturing again to the table. “I know a few people who’d shit their pants at the chance to meet y’all”. 

“Yeahhh!” Nicky cheered, shaking the table. “A fucking high school party! Oh, I haven’t been to a house party in so long. Please, please, _please_ can we go?” he asked, looking first at Aaron and then Andrew. 

Kevin watched, uninvested, as Aaron too looked at Andrew. His expression said he was already bracing for a no. 

“Sure,” Andrew shrugged, surprising everyone for the second time that night. He met none of their eyes and continued to work steadily at his drinks. Jason grinned at Andrew, in no way understanding the foxes’s surprise. 

“I’ll text you the address, then. You still have your old number?” Aaron nodded and Jason thumped his shoulder once again. “I’ll see you there, then, man.” He waved to the table before heading towards the exit. 

The table unanimously gazed at Andrew for answers. “Finish your drinks, then,” he ordered, giving them none. And they did just that, Nicky chugging his round desperately. 

When all the glasses were empty, Andrew sent all but Neil to start the valet on retrieving their car while he returned to the bar to pay their tab. 

Finally separate from the others, Neil arched an eyebrow amusedly at Andrew while they waited for Roland’s attention. If Andrew noticed his questioning glance, he did nothing to acknowledge it. 

“Sure?” Neil questioned as Roland slid them a receipt in a black book.

Andrew counted out bills from his wallet. “I like concerts,” is all Andrew offered as he closed the book. Neil couldn’t ask for more of an explanation before Andrew was taking the lead out of the club. 

Navigating in unfamiliar territory was something Neil didn’t have a lot of trouble with, naturally, and they were at the house in under 15 minutes. He felt a bit of curiosity spark up in him as he found a parking space a bit of a ways down the block. 

He had had far too much to worry about during his year at Millport to ever attend the parties he was invited to. He wasn’t completely opposed to seeing what one was like, especially with the security that came with having Andrew at his side. 

Nicky continued to talk Kevin’s unwilling ear off as they approached the house, his raving moving on from weddings to different concerts he’d been to in high school. Aaron led the way, leaving Neil and Andrew silently in the middle of the pack. 

Andrew smoked a cigarette he had lit in the car down to its filter and watched his twin with interest as he greeted a grinning Jason at the front steps. He moved to advance past them, not willing to waste time with formalities. 

“Oh, hey.” Jason caught him before he could get through the door, cutting off his words with Aaron. “Let me help get you situated. Follow me.”

The dull thump of drums escalated into muffled punk music as they entered the house. Though, the amount of bodies was surprisingly sparse on this floor- Neil guessed that the show was downstairs. 

Andrew must have come to that same conclusion as he pushed on once inside, ignoring Jason’s pause as he looked around for Heath. Neil followed behind but was cut off abruptly when Andrew froze, a large man with long, curly hair now standing in his path. 

“Aaron!” he greeted Andrew. Before he could slap him on the shoulder (and get his hand cut off while he was at it), Neil urged an arm forward, blocking the two. 

“The twin you’re looking for is over there,” Neil explained quickly, gesturing backward with his thumb. 

The man (Heath, Neil was guessing) seemed unfazed by Neil’s reaction. “Oh, shit! You’re his new teammate! The FBI one- Neil, right?” he said bruntly, holding a hand out. “I’m Aaron’s old teammate, Heath. You guys are fucking awesome.”

Neil smiled and shook his hand politely, keeping an eye on Andrew, who he was sure would abandon him in favor of the music downstairs. 

“Congrats on that win tonight- Binghamton had it coming. From one goalie to another, wow” he aimed at Andrew, who was miraculously still standing at Neil’s side. Neil’s mouth twitched in an impressed smile as Andrew humored him with a nod. 

“I’ve gotta go catch up with A’ but I’d love to hear some pointers from you later. The basement’s where the real party is at. Oh, speaking of, here.” Heath reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small plastic sandwich bag with gummy worms. 

He offered them Neil’s way but, when Neil put a hand out to turn them down, Heath upturned the bag, misunderstanding the gesture. Neil caught them just in time, looking down at the multicolored candy in his hands as Heath laughed and patted his shoulder, moving to Aaron and the others. 

Neil glanced at Andrew who followed Heath with his eyes and flicked them to Neil’s palm when he decided the high schooler wasn’t a threat to his brother. Neil chuckled as Andrew, ever the sugar addict, plucked the candy from his hand. Neil helped him finish them off, thankful to have something to get the stale taste of his second shot from hours ago out of his mouth, though he did find it a little peculiar that the host of the party was handing out gummy worms of all things to his guests. He guessed he wouldn’t know what was customary at these things. 

Andrew chewed the last of the candy and wiped his hand on his pants as he turned towards the basement steps. Neil copied his gaze. Down the hallway, past the set of stairs that took one to the second floor and before the kitchen, was another set of stairs leading to the basement. The passageway looked pretty congested but Neil didn’t have time to share the thought before Andrew was steadily walking towards it. 

Neil wasn’t quite sure how they did it, but they managed to make it through the crowd with ease- something about Andrew’s aura parted the bodies in their way like the Red Sea. 

They settled into a spot close to the performers but with a cinderblock wall securely at their side. Neil wasn’t surprised that Andrew chose a spot where he could keep his personal space, even in an environment that should’ve made that impossible. 

He surveyed the room, watching the sea of teenagers writhe to the beat of the music. Though he didn’t particularly care for the song or its volume, disappearing into a crowd was, out of habit, comforting to him. He’d initially been worried about getting recognized, his scars telling too much about who he was even out of uniform, but everyone was too drunk, high and otherwise caught up with themselves to even notice him, apparently. He was really just at a high school party, he realized, as the sound of dozens of separate conversations battled with the sound of the music pumping from different amps.

Neil’s attention was jerked to the front when a new, even faster song cut through the room, the speaker demanding that everyone “fucking shut up” before screaming out lyrics in a way that Neil wasn’t sure qualified as musical. A small group of kids began shoving each other and Neil was worried a fight had broken out until he realized some of them were laughing. Maybe this was normal, too. Interesting. Regardless, his spot against the wall was seeming better by the second.

He glanced down at Andrew and was surprised to see his eyes were closed as he moved a microscopic amount to the music pulsing into the room. Neil supposed there was no reason for him to keep his guard up, but he was surprised all the same to see it come down like this. Andrew really hadn’t been kidding when he said he liked concerts. And just like that, Neil’s attention was no longer on the punk band.

They stayed like that for multiple songs before Andrew finally opened his eyes when the band announced the end of their set. He slid his gaze up at Neil before dropping it with a bored look. “Staring.”

Neil didn’t try to defend himself or his smile and instead watched the crowd shift around as the next band set up. A good amount of people left for upstairs and out a side door that let cool air into the room and Neil wondered if it was getting late. As he pulled his phone out and read the green ‘12:47’ that stared back at him, his mouth suddenly became dry and a strange bubbling in the back of his throat became hard to ignore. He figured he was dehydrated and wondered if he could pull Andrew from his spot against the wall long enough to get a drink.

As if reading his mind, Andrew simply stated, “Water,” as Neil turned back to him. He nodded and let Andrew lead him, the lights in the room somehow feeling brighter than they had a second ago. Neil squinted as he tracked Andrew- his smaller form seemed to move slower and with less of an edge than usual but Neil still found it hard to keep up. He blinked hard and decided he needed some fresh air, too. 

Instead of heading back up to the ground floor, Andrew led them to a small bathroom that Neil didn’t know was there. The quiet that came when Andrew shut the door behind them startled him. 

Andrew stood with his eyes closed, his back to the door as he breathed deeply. His eyebrows were arched high and it formed a curious expression Neil hadn’t seen before. He stared at it blankly, worry clouding some part of his brain. He remembered that they both needed a drink pretty bad and turned around a couple times in search of the sink before he found it and firmly put his hands on its sides to stop it from moving again. 

He worked his hands up the porcelain until he was holding the cool metal of the faucet’s handles, pulling them forward. His thoughts briefly considered the idea of a cup before he settled on moving his mouth directly under the stream. 

The feeling of the water on his lips was strangely entrancing and he couldn’t quite stop himself from letting it rush over the rest of his face. He felt euphoric as his skin was drenched. Why didn’t he do this _more?_

He held himself there for what felt like hours before remembering- ‘ _Andrew_ ’. He pulled back and stood up with water dripping into his black button up’s collar.

Andrew was now staring absently at the floor by Neil’s shoes. Neil felt himself involuntarily sway in his spot as he gauged the other man. Andrew’s hooded expression looked a different kind of blank than usual. 

Neil gestured to the sink, wanting to communicate his water-drinking solution to Andrew but unable to put the words in the right order. He tried harder when Andrew didn’t respond to his non-verbal suggestion but still found the job impossible- just when he would start a sentence, it would get interrupted by his thoughts on how great soaking your face in a sink apparently was. He distantly knew he should be panicking more than he was at the odd state of his thoughts but just couldn’t quite find that in himself either. 

He then caught his own eye in a mirror above the sink he hadn’t noticed before. A surge of fear rushed him at the sight of his natural eye and hair color but he caught up with himself when his gaze fell to the circular burn mark on the apple of his cheek. He touched it without thinking, circling around its edges gently and realized he was getting lost staring at his reflection. His own expression was almost as hooded as Andrew’s- did he always look like that?

His low eyelids almost kept him from realizing how _red_ his eyes were. He _was_ a lot more tired than he’d thought! He considered rinsing off under the faucet again to wake himself up more and it suddenly hit him that he forgot about Andrew _again_! Because of his own _face_! 

He heard himself begin to giggle in a way he didn’t quite recognize, letting the sound fall easily from his lips against his better judgement which was long gone, it seemed. He knew he had to be getting Andrew water and that he couldn’t even form a coherent enough thought to do this but he couldn’t _stop_.

His stomach began to ache from laughing and he turned to Andrew, whose stare was now right on him. Before he could explain himself, Andrew spoke. “You’re high.”

Neil processed for a moment and blinked, his giggling quieting down. He was focused more on how bummed he was that Andrew wouldn’t giggle with him than on what Andrew just said so it took him a second to interpret the words. _You’re high_. ‘No I’m not,’ Neil thought, making a face. He didn’t know much about the meaning of the word but he _did_ know you had to smoke or at least swallow something to get there. 

“No, I’m not,” Neil said out loud, crossing his arms. He stood off with Andrew a moment, who did not seem persuaded, before a smile stretched onto his face once again. He would not be able to come up with a reason to save his life as to why he started giggling this tine but he did, nonetheless.

“Yes, you are,” Andrew said simply, wiping a palm over his face and then his hair. “We both are.” 

Neil almost repeated himself but stopped. Andrew knew better than him and the way his thoughts were circling like a fat cat chasing its tail needed some kind of explanation, he supposed. It still didn’t make sense though. He hadn’t _smoked_ or _swallowed_ anything.

He was going to say this but stopped when Andrew started making that face again, his eyes closed and his eyebrows arching high. The worry finally cut through the fog in Neil’s brain. He moved to stand in front of Andrew, arms hovering over his chest protectively. He forced himself to focus and watched carefully. 

Andrew slowly opened his eyes, blinking a few times at Neil’s closeness. When their bloodshot stares met, Neil felt his breath catch in his throat as Andrew cracked a small smile, sweet unlike those he used to sport before coming off his medication. 

“What?” he asked, pushing Neil back a couple steps, two fingers hard against his chest. Neil stumbled for a moment and then matched Andrew’s expression and crossed his arms, leaning back in close. 

“What?” he asked back. He could tell the blonde was trying to school his expression and that something stronger betrayed him. 

“Yes or no?” is what Andrew responded with, hands like ghosts beneath Neil’s jaw. 

“Hmm,” Neil said, bringing a finger to his chin, “should I let you hide your smile by kissing me? I might never see it again.”

“Up to you,” Andrew shot back, finally managing to force a frown. Neil laughed at him. 

He put a hand beside Andrew’s head on the door. “Of course.”

Andrew didn’t waste any time arguing, immediately grabbing Neil by the sides of his face and moving in quickly. Neil felt like he was floating on a cloud as he let his lips pulse against Andrew’s (this was _way_ better than the faucet) but he didn’t let himself touch back without permission. He dropped his hands to his sides in fists, like always. 

Luckily, Andrew caught the motion and guided Neil’s hands where he wanted them- around his waist. Neil couldn’t help but gasp into the warm mouth, inhibitions blown out the window.

He was just about singing at Andrew pulling at the edges of his hair when the door rumbled behind them with a loud knock. Andrew dropped his hands and brushed Neil off as he turned around, pressing his back into Neil’s chest. Neil couldn’t tell if the contact was accidental or not but he was _so_ far from complaining.

Andrew lazily straightened his sweater and gestured vaguely at Neil as he pulled open the door. They were met with a small line of glaring teenagers whose expressions said they knew exactly what the two had been doing in there. The mousy brown-haired girl leading the line gasped and her eyes widened in recognition after a few moments of taking in Neil’s face.

“You’re Neil Josten,” she said.

Neil wasn’t sure he’d know how to respond to this kind of thing sober. So, he chose not to, really. 

“No, I’m not,” he said, starting to giggle again. He grabbed Andrew’s sweater sleeve and dragged him away from the bathroom, leaving a fee different kinds of confusion in his place.

He flew across the floor, smiling widely at the feeling. Andrew blinked up at him when he stopped them both at the staircase. “You wanna stay?” the redhead asked. 

Andrew grabbed Neil’s shirt and stood on his tiptoes to reach the taller boy’s ear. “Take me somewhere dark.”

Neil shivered at the feeling of Andrew’s breath on his neck and began pulling his sweater sleeve back up to the main floor, ignoring the sideways glances they got from the people stationed on the stairs.

Neil felt a newfound importance in the fact that he was leading Andrew to their next destination. It felt similar to when he would scavenge different small towns for empty houses except _fun_ and he was eager to impress his passenger with his skills. He would find the _darkest_ room in the whole _house_. 

When they reached the first floor, he took a moment to reintroduce himself to the house’s layout. After checking briefly to make sure it was Andrew’s sweater he was still holding, he found himself back at the entryway, staring up stairs that led to the next floor. Oh that was _perfect_.

Except, when he tugged Andrew’s sweater, he met resistance. He whipped around and gave Andrew a questioning look. He pointed at the staircase with his free hand. “It’s dark up there,” he explained. 

Andrew shook his head, looking tired. “No, Neil. You can’t just go upstairs at parties.”

Neil looked around, trying to spot the sign that said so. “Why not?” he whispered. He felt the need to whisper. 

“Because… that’s where the bedrooms are,” Andrew answered in a normal voice, his arm still suspended in the air thanks to Neil’s pull. 

Neil squinted at him, not following the logic. Was sleeping in other people’s beds considered rude? Neil could get behind that. “Are they afraid we’ll get the beds all messy?” he finally reasoned.

Andrew began to smile that small escaped smile again. “In a way… yeah,” he agreed. 

Neil studied his expression, his own smile cutting onto his face easily at the sight of Andrew’s. “What?” he asked, shaking Andrew’s arm with impatience. 

Andrew waved a hand but didn’t manage to get rid of his humored expression. “Do you need me to spell it out for you, Josten? How old are you again?”

Neil stared at him blankly again. Spell what out? What did people do in bedrooms that… 

_‘Oh.’_

Laughter erupted from Neil as he dropped Andrew’s sweater sleeve. Andrew barely managed a straight face and pulled his hand back, watching Neil grow red in the face. 

“I didn’t want to do _that_ ,” Neil said with the little breath he had. “It’s just dark up there.”

“Why not?” Andrew asked coolly. Neil just gaped at him, not knowing how to correctly respond. 

Andrew rolled his eyes, “Come on,” he said turning towards a living room Neil hadn’t known was there (how did Andrew keep _doing_ that).

The room was dark (not as dark as upstairs, though) and had two arm chairs on either side of a well-worn sofa. It was empty aside from a revolving disco light set on the center coffee table, matching the glow of the Christmas lights strung around the room and windows. Neil watched Andrew flop down onto the couch, resting an arm over his face, and sat in the space that the other’s legs couldn’t reach.

The endings to one of the string of lights rested on the arm of the sofa to Neil’s left and his mind was immediately zapped of everything else. The way the fractured rays seemed to pierce the dark was _beautiful_. Neil let his fingers dance over the small bulbs and studied the way his own shadow manipulated the color with intensity. He _had_ to get some of these for his room. He thought he could talk Andrew into it. 

He distantly felt the couch shift beside him and didn’t realize what Andrew was doing until his right arm was being moved by small but strong hands. He stared down as Andrew settled his head into his lap, eyes still closed, and felt his eyes widen even larger when his arm was placed back down over Andrew’s chest. He couldn’t help when he held his breath.

“Wh-”

“Don’t start,” Andrew said with warning in spite of the warm smile Neil had gotten nicely acquainted with over the course of the night. Following instruction, Neil simply gave himself a smile to match and settled into the sofa, gazing towards the purple lights once more. They sat like that for a small eternity, the only sound coming distantly from the basement as a new band played their set. 

Neil’s completely contented mind couldn’t help but drift to the other foxes. He wondered what they were doing right now. Certainly not _this_. No matter where they were or how happy they felt, Andrew was in _his_ lap. And Neil felt just a little cocky about that. 

He suddenly remembered that some of those teammates had come with them to the house and that he hadn’t seen them since they got there. That felt like _years_ ago.

“Where do you think Kevin and everyone are… is… are?” Neil said, breaking the silence.

“Don’t care.”

“Don’t care?” Neil asked, flipping his look to Andrew’s face, which was still trying to trick him into thinking he was asleep. “What if they got kidnapped?”

“They can handle it,” he answered. Neil took a moment to consider how different Andrew’s response would have been last year. A _lot_ happened last year. 

“Just like I did, right?” 

Andrew tensed a bit and his eyes flicked open, his face closer to its usual expression. Hooded, not-quite-bored hazel eyes stared into Neil. “Don’t joke about that.”

“Just saying,” Neil defended, leaning his head back against the couch in order to escape Andrew’s glare. “I found my way back.”

Andrew didn’t say anything but grabbed Neil’s wrist firmly, either in warning or protectively. Neil just smiled to himself at the pressure.

Something inside him made it hard to keep quiet and his thoughts slipped from one topic to the next. “So you like concerts, huh?”

Andrew loosened his grip and instead began tracing shapeless patterns into Neil’s forearm. “I like how loud they are.”

Neil packed that away into his mind. “Any specific genre?”

Neil felt Andrew trace a lazy ‘N O’ into his forearm. He smiled and started staring at the lights yet again.

“Could we get string lights for our room?”

“No,” Andrew answered flatly, “you’re just high.”

Neil’s mind shot back to the question that had been burning in the back of his mind. “How-”

“The candy,” Andrew interrupted, sighing as he put his arms back at his sides, one dangling off the edge of the couch. 

“So you knew?”

“No..,” Andrew said slowly, “I’ve never seen stuff like that before. But I don’t think it’d be hard to like… put the, like… oil… in the thing…,”

“The oil in the thing?” Neil asked, not even trying to hide the grin in his voice. 

“Shut up. I ate way more than you.”

“You seem pretty normal, though.”

“I don’t feel normal,” Andrew mumbled, closing his eyes and making that face from the bathroom again. 

“Noo, like… how do you do it?”

Andrew sighed and answered after a pause. “It’s kind of like when I was medicated. You feel happy so your brain… loses its filter. You can just force yourself to… do it manually. And, worse comes to worst… you just keep quiet.”

Neil thought over this. “I wanna see you without a filter.”

Neil just smiled at the look Andrew gave him. “367%.”

“What’s the worst that could happen, huh?” 

Andrew didn’t answer for a moment. “I’m already in your lap- don’t push it.”

“Okay,” Neil said, trying and failing not to start giggling again. Andrew was in his lap. Just when he thought he’d stop, a new thought had him starting all over again. 

“Oh my god,” Andrew said. “What?”

Neil made himself settle down and hummed at the ache in his abdomen. “I thought people just... gave candy out at parties.” Saying it out loud set him off all over again.

Andrew let out a huff and grabbed Neil’s wrist again. “Clueless.”

Neil asked another question to try to distract himself from the endless laughter that escaped him. “Did you go to any parties in high school?”

Andrew shrugged as best as he could laying down. “Sometimes,” he said, and after a pause, “anything to get out of the house”. 

Neil felt the silence settle, save for the steady pounding from the basement, but didn’t have to try too hard to change the subject. 

“I’ve never really thought about music,” he said. Andrew hummed in response. “We’d put on the radio sometimes to keep us up on the highway. I never really listened to any of it. It just broke up the miles.” His mind gazed to the sight of long, straight lanes, light reflecting off cars both night and day.

“Though I do remember this one song I liked,” Neil said, only letting himself giggle for a moment this time. “It was like…, ‘One day… you’ll find… that I have gone,” he laughed at his own raspy singing. “The Beatles one about the sun but… not the famous one.”

“‘I’ll Follow the Sun,’” Andrew figured. “That’s fitting.”

“Yeah,” Neil said fondly. “Radio stations always loved to play that right at sunrise. Usually after the more famous one.” Andrew hummed again. 

“I think… it might be because of that time of day, actually, that I liked the song. It was always more quiet. And more safe. And if I saw the sun rise… that meant we survived another night. You know?”

Andrew didn’t respond but simply watched Neil carefully, though Neil knew the worry was misplaced. This might have been one of the first times he actually had a memory of his mom that wasn’t stained with panic and misery. He just felt warm. Though, that might have been Andrew’s fault. 

“You’re warm,” Neil said before he could stop himself. Andrew’s eyes rolled, breaking the worried stare. 

“You aaaare,” he insisted. Neil let himself bask in it for a minute until yet another revelation hit him. “I’m so hungry.”

Andrew nodded in agreement and waited a moment before lifting Neil’s arm and himself up. Neil frowned at the loss of contact. 

“Let’s go to the kitchen,” Andrew said simply, standing up and waiting.

Neil wasn’t sure he could make himself get up and just stared at Andrew helplessly. Andrew quirked that funny smile again and leaned in, grabbing Neil’s shoulders. 

”Let’s go, Junkie,” he said lowly, pulling Neil in another kiss. Neil no longer felt stuck to the couch, practically weightless at the feeling of Andrew against his lips. He let himself be pulled to his feet, making a noise of protest when Andrew pulled back all too soon and started for the hallway. 

The harshness of the small kitchen’s white light made Neil squint involuntarily. He now understood Andrew’s original ‘somewhere dark’ request. 

When his eyes adjusted, he saw Andrew digging through the freezer, returning with a gallon carton of cookies n’ cream ice cream. He passed Neil and began rummaging through drawers, finally turning back with two spoons. He handed one to Neil and uncovered the ice cream, leaning against the kitchen counter. 

Neil watched Andrew start to eat silently, scooping a spoonful for himself. “Shouldn’t we ask Heath first?” he asked, shoving the spoon in his mouth anyway. 

Andrew shrugged, licking his lips. “It’s his fault for getting us this high.” Neil supposed that was true. He distantly wondered what Heath’s parents would think about two college exy players eating all their ice cream. 

His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice. “Hey!” Nicky said as he walked into the kitchen, followed by Kevin. “We’ve been looking all over for you.”

“Clearly not very well,” Andrew said, unimpressed. Neil covered his mouth with the hand balancing his spoon as he broke out into the hundreth giggling fit of the night. He turned to see Andrew smiling at the carton. 

“Wait,” Kevin said from behind Nicky, passing him as he approached Neil with a look of disbelief. He stood in front of Neil, squatting to look into his eyes. Neil widened his eyes in a mocking gesture before turning away and giggling all over again. 

“You’re fucking high,” Kevin said accusingly. 

“No,” Neil said, his flushed smile not doing much to add credibility to his words. 

“No fair!” Nicky said, crossing his arms. “I get stuck with Mr. ‘You-Can’t-Mosh-It-Could-Ruin-Our-Season’ and you two get stoned?” Neil just shrugged, reaching for the ice cream carton again. 

“Are you crazy,” Kevin continued, undeterred. Neil glanced down at the ice cream on his spoon and held it out to Kevin in an offering. Kevin let out an exasperated noise and shook his head. 

“What if there’s a random drug test? You would be benched, maybe expelled. What then?” Neil frowned and considered offering the spoon again.

“Hush,” Andrew ordered, flicking a piece of oreo at Kevin’s head. Kevin turned his angry glare on the shorter boy. “They only test before important matches, they’re easy to cheat and the damage is already done. Plus,” he continued, gesturing with his spoon, “it was an accident.”

“Who puts drugs in gummy worms?” Neil added for emphasis, his mouth full of the white ice cream. 

“You need to be more careful,” Kevin grumbled, settling down at the kitchen table. 

“Or at least invite me next time,” Nicky whined.

“Accident,” Andrew reminded him as Kevin spat out, “There won’t be a next time.”

The sound of laughter closing in from the hallway preceded the entrance of Aaron and Heath into the kitchen. Heath boomed a greeting to the foxes and, taking note of Andrew and Neil, laughed heartily. “I guess the edibles kicked in, eh?”

Before Kevin could chew the high schooler out for giving his players weed, Heath continued. “It’s fine if you want to double dip into my dad’s ice cream, sure. But just give me one thing in return, huh?” he asked, looking at Andrew. “Did you think of any goalkeeping advice for me?”

Neil watched Andrew, who licked his sticky finger clean as he thought. 

“Don’t let the ball go in the net,” he said finally.

Neil, of course, was the first to double over in laughter.


	2. Boring

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By request, here is a sequel to Neil and Andrew getting zonked. This is the same night as the first part but I have been cooking up some new scenarios for future works/chapters.

After some exy small talk, soured in part by Kevin’s unrelenting glare aimed at Heath, the foxes decided they’d had enough catching up with Aaron’s high school friends and began to head out. Aaron and his friends took the lead, chattering to the door, so that Kevin, Nicky and the two shortest players in college exy were left alone in the kitchen. 

The two sober ones grudgingly turned towards their teammates, who were giggling about nonsense, now both holding a side of the rectangular carton. Their words were indiscernible, Andrew muttering something every now and then between his mounds of ice cream and Neil laughing through his smile that was biting down on his spoon. 

Kevin sighed out deeply and shoved an exhausted expression into his palm in Nicky’s periphery, who decided he’d be taking the lead here. “Okay, lovebirds,” he announced, taking a step towards the pair, “it’s time to go.”

They obviously heard him, based on the way Neil’s pink eyes slid towards him and then back to Andrew who muttered something to set Neil off again. Nicky rolled his eyes. He couldn’t quite make out what Andrew said, but he knew they couldn’t have been _that_ hilarious. 

“Okay, come on,” he said, crossing his arms. “You don’t have to be that obvious about it when you’re making fun of me.” Neil was silent for a moment before bursting out again, covering his face as he turned away from Nicky. A small smile curled on Andrew’s face as he stared down at the carton, still refusing to acknowledge his cousin. 

“Oh my god,” Kevin muttered tiredly, leaving Nicky to deal with the two twenty-year olds acting half their age. 

“You guys can laugh at me all you want- just do it in the car, mmkay?” Nicky said, trying to convey with his tone that he wasn’t exactly the one worthy of being teased right now. He watched them talk it over with just their playful stares, Neil tilting his head a couple ways and leaning against the sink as he tried to read Andrew. Nicky, for as open he was about his own hopeless romanticism, felt a little sickened at the sweetness. 

Right when he was about to abandon them (deciding that if the two wanted to eye-fuck all night, they could have at it), Andrew grabbed the lid to the carton and threw the ice cream into the freezer haphazardly. He then snatched Neil’s spoon in another decisive action, throwing it with his into the sink. Nicky’s eyes widened as he watched his cousin grab Neil’s hand to lead him from the kitchen, but he kept his mouth shut, knowing that a high Andrew didn’t equate to a nonviolent Andrew. 

Neil let himself drift across the wooden floor, Andrew’s arm keeping him on earth as he floated through the air. Before he knew it, cool air was greeting his face and he was squinting in the harsh porch lights. He got confused when they stopped moving, watching the shape of his teammates grow farther from the house as they walked down the street towards the Maserati. He turned to ask about it but got distracted by the shape of Andrew’s pale jaw in the yellow light that should have been unflattering. The sharp line defined itself even more than usual as the blonde held a cigarette between his lips and _oh, man_.

He snapped out of it when his fingers began moving on their own accord, accepting the cigarette passed his way. Andrew didn’t comment on his frozen gaze and instead returned it, not hiding how eyes moved between Neil’s features, syrupy slow. 

“Why’d we stop,” Neil asked finally, pressing the yellow filter up to his mouth, his breath making the lit embers flare. Andrew’s eyes lingered on Neil ruining his lungs for a moment more and then moved them to the right with a slight nod of the head. He grabbed his cigarette back as Neil looked to the other side of the porch.

Here, he saw Aaron still talking to both Jason and Heath in the dim light, saying their goodbyes for the night. Neil stared at them for a little too long through tired eyes and came to the realization that Andrew was waiting for his brother. _Ohh_. Neil huffed and looked towards the street with the smile that felt unusually easy on his face. _Andrew_.

It was nothing out of the ordinary for the goalie- being protective was as second-nature to Andrew as breathing. But whether he’d be effective as a bodyguard stoned out of his mind, Neil wasn’t too sure. Well, he kind of was- he _wouldn’t_ , if how Neil felt was anything to go by. Something about that tough, cigarette-smoking exterior (that was _unfortunately_ hot to Neil) masking a brain that was, at best, spacing out into another dimension just... humored Neil a tiny bit. 

“What are you so happy about?” Andrew asked flatly. 

Neil kept the smile on his face as he met Andrew’s stare and shrugged nonchalantly, “I’m just really warm. You know?” 

He knew he could get away with the lie and he wasn’t about to potentially make Andrew feel bad about something he had no way of changing- maybe later, but not now. 

Andrew bought it, rolling his eyes and handing the cigarette back to Neil. Neil accepted, his grin widening when, on its way down, Andrew’s hand laced through his. 

“Feel pretty cold and sweaty to me,” he said in a tone that was fooling nobody. He waited for Neil to take another drag before stealing the smoke back for himself. Neil wondered if he thought the dim light was hiding his blush. 

Neil pushed his shoulder up against Andrew’s and sighed. Andrew let out a blunt “yes”, and he was lost for a moment, but when Andrew’s hand instead snaked around his hip, his head almost immediately fell onto the other’s shoulder and the mystery was solved. He smiled. Somehow, Andrew always knew what he wanted before he did. 

He let out an absolutely embarrassing giggle but it was out of his hands. Andrew normally made him happy, but this just felt so _nice_. It felt like someone was tickling his stomach from the inside and there was nothing he could do to stop it. It was almost too much happiness, if there was such a thing. 

“Doesn’t swing,” Andrew muttered as if to himself, but Neil, of course, felt the words as they rumbled up his throat. 

Neil also realized in that moment that they probably looked at least a little funny because, if he was correct, the shorter one usually leaned on the taller one. ‘But,’ his thoughts counter-argued against themselves, ‘Aaron and Katelyn make it work.’ He actually recalled seeing them in this exact configuration before. The thought almost made him seize up in laughter again but he didn’t want to get kicked out of the crook of Andrew’s neck so he bit down on his tongue and just barely managed to keep it together. 

He wasn’t even sure exactly what was funny, just something about how he was _Katelyn_ and how _mad_ that would make Andrew. 

Neil almost felt like he’d fallen asleep with his eyes open because of how blank his mind was as he watched the moonlit street, the occasional car rolling by the narrow street every now and then. The night somehow already looked like a memory as he stared out at it and that _really_ perplexed him, but Andrew’s steady breath kept him from thinking about it too deeply. 

He lifted his head back up at the tug of his hand, whining a bit before he could stop himself. The smirk he saw on Andrew’s profile as he shook his head made him feel a little less embarrassed and by the time he was pulled to the bottom of the porch steps, he’d forgotten about it entirely. 

Aaron didn’t even take the time to acknowledge the two as they trailed behind him on the way back to the car. Andrew, in a similar fashion, made no effort to keep up with his pace, apparently satisfied with just keeping his brother within eyesight. Or, at least, Neil assumed he could see his brother. 

To him, everything was so _blurry_. Like, he could _see_ everything but it didn’t feel like it was there. The small rooms had been nice but, out on the street, it felt like there were a million things going on and that he had the capacity for none of them. 

He gazed up and tried to focus on a streetlight as they approached it but, as they drew closer, his mind fell even further and, just like that, he went from feeling pleasantly confused to completely helpless. He closed his eyes and tried to center his mind, holding tighter Andrew’s hand in his. 

A car driving by slowly caught his attention and got his guard up as high as it could be like this. He squinted at it, trying to remember how to look intimidating. He didn’t feel any easier when the car drove right by without event. 

He didn’t quite feel the urgency of the thought when it hit him- it was almost something his brain had to acknowledge out of habit. But he was pretty sure that it would not end well if someone- Wesninski or Moriyama- decided that now would be a good time to check up on or kidnap him. In the open, it was a little scary, somewhere in the back of his mind, that he couldn’t really watch out for himself. The thought was the closest thing that night to bumming him out.

“Hey Drew,” he heard himself say. Andrew hummed in question. 

“I feel like…,” he started, “I feel like…. I’m in a dream.”

“Hm,” Andrew responded thoughtfully. “A dream?”

“I can’t like…,” Neil started, feeling his feet continue on in front of him, “... feel anything. I feel like… can you make sure I’m okay?” He didn’t want to get too specific, knowing that if he told Andrew what he was thinking, the shorter man would probably slap him. (Not _really_ but still).

“You’re okay,” Andrew responded in a soft tone. Neil smiled. He felt all warm and fuzzy again, all danger of being bummed gone. He let his head loll from side to side and his feet flop more than usual to match the feeling and the smile on his face, needing a new way to externalize the butterflies. He knew it must seem strange but so was having a body and that wasn’t his problem.

“What’d you think of the party?” he asked, wanting to keep that feeling and also genuinely curious to know how this party compared to others. 

“It was a high school party,” Andrew stated, somehow leaving his opinion out of it.

“And?” Neil pushed.

“It was pretty uneventful.”

Neil looked down at Andrew with a grin, who was apparently not joking, which just amused Neil more. 

“Uneventful?” he asked. “What else could have happened that didn’t? We get super high, kiss, and then eat all of a high schooler’s ice cream?”

“You just had fun cuz you’re boring.”

Neil chuckled. “It’s not my fault I never could go to parties.”

“No, but it’s your fault you’re boring,” Andrew responded. Neil bumped against his hip with his own in favor of laughing this time. 

“Hey!”

A voice called from behind them, breaking Neil out of his floppy-footed walk as he spun around to look towards it. Andrew was then suddenly pulling him the other way, towards the voice, and he didn’t really have a problem with it but also wasn’t really sure why it was happening. When they drew closer and Neil’s blurry vision revealed Aaron sticking his head out of the passenger side of the Maserati, he was even more confused. 

“Did you move the car?” he asked with a scrunched up expression, letting Andrew’s hand go to feel at his hair. It was a lot greasier than he remembered and kind of sweaty. Andrew opened the back door and started to crawl inside.

“Is he serious?” he heard, muffled, from inside the car (the exhausted tone told him it was Kevin).

“We missed it the first time. So we walked back,” Andrew responded from the open back seat, sitting with his legs hanging out towards Neil. Neil could tell it’d been a thought process for him as well. He looked to his left down the sidewalk and then back at Andrew and realized the story checked out. 

“Oh,” he said, grinning amusedly. Andrew apparently saw something interesting on his face because he just stared at Neil for a while after that, not making any move into the car. Neil smiled wider. He wasn’t in any rush either

“Jesus Christ,” Kevin cried from the front seat when he realized what was happening. “Get the fuck in so we can go _home_.”

Neil acknowledged him with a quick glance. When he looked back to Andrew’s face, a new smirk was painted on it, which was not very promising for Kevin’s short-term goals. 

Neil just stood there, not really sure how to follow the directions with Andrew being uncooperative and not really wanting to. He leaned down to poke at the dimple on the blonde’s face. 

“Can you scoot over?” he asked. 

“Hm?” Andrew asked, as if he didn’t hear him. 

Neil smiled wider. “You heard Kevin- I have to get the fuck in.” He crossed his arms. 

“Ok,” Andrew said with a shrug. His smirk was the only indication that he knew what he was doing. 

Neil laughed, the cold fall air becoming steam at his breath. He thought about it and then switched modes, putting on a fake pout. “I’m getting cold.”

“Oh, no,” Andrew replied in a sarcastic tone. 

Neil knew he was supposed to be the one getting teased but this made him burst out in laughter, doubling over himself. When he finally righted himself, Andrew’s smile was the biggest and most genuine he’d ever seen it. 

He gasped a bit at the sight before collecting himself and putting his fake pout back on. He started slowly turning on his feet. “Guess I’ll have to hitchhike back. See you guys later…”

He smiled as his hand was caught from behind, Andrew pulling him inside. He felt that same warmth swirling as Andrew pressed against him, reaching across to pull the door shut. He giggled as Andrew sat back down, falling again into his shoulder.

“Fucking finally,” Kevin muttered from the front. Neil closed his eyes, happy to be in the dark again. The air from the vents and quiet felt so nice he didn’t even mind Kevin’s harsh tone. 

“Hey, how often does Andrew joke around? Leave them be.” Nicky said at Andrew’s left. 

“Them getting high out of their minds doesn’t mean I somehow gain the patience to deal with it. They took forever.”

“Oh hush, Kevin- you wanted to leave as soon as you saw that all they had to drink was box wine.” 

Neil stopped paying attention to their bickering, focusing instead on the sound of Andrew’s smooth breaths. He felt strange- like he was so sleepy but, at the same time, didn’t feel like he could drift off. He was completely comfortable and relaxed, inside and out- Andrew’s shoulder felt like the only place he could ever be.

The sound of a loud horn made him pick his head up. He was met with the sight of passing headlights. He gaped at the sight and his mind returned to his and Andrew’s conversation from before. 

So many nights of his life had been spent on highways just like this one- it was entirely possible that he’d driven on this exact highway before with his mother. They melded together too easily and were kept separate only by the fear that each individual day could be his last. He hadn’t known for all those years that there was an end to all the madness after all. It was a completely different life from the one he had now. It was hard for him to wrap his head around. 

The feeling of Andrew’s cheek smushing into his shoulder grounded him and made right now feel more real. His mind was blank so he couldn’t help but think about such huge things as the directions of his life but it wasn’t scary anymore. It might have been before, but not anymore. And not because anything was any more certain but because at least now he had something to believe in. 

He turned to his left to gaze down at that something. Andrew rolled his head to return the look without lifting his head from Neil’s shoulder. He smiled softly and then leaned once more against Andrew, resting his head on top of the other’s. Andrew laced his fingers through Neil’s at this and let them both rest on his thigh. Neil could tell that they were the only things on each other’s minds. 

The next thing Neil knew, the car was sputtering off and the sound of car doors opening replaced the near-silence. The three sober passengers emptied out much faster than Neil was currently able to think about, leaving them in the car alone. Andrew moving his head was the only thing that made Neil’s move his. He groaned and pried his eyes open, confused that the ride was over so soon. 

“What happened? Are we at the house?” he asked. 

“Uh,” Andrew started, standing up in the car to glance through the windshield. “Nope. We’re _back_ back.”

“Wha…?” Neil let out, leaning around the front seats to see what Andrew was seeing. (All he got was a few street lights again. Fucking street lights…)

“How did that happen,” he asked, sighing and falling back into his seat. He realized suddenly he actually was tired now, not just high. He wanted nothing more than to curl up with Andrew in his stupid tiny dorm bed. _Man_ did he want his legs tangled with Andrew’s right now. 

But that would require actually _moving_. 

He let out a groan from deep in his throat. 

“What?” Andrew questioned, leaning back next to him.

“I don’t wanna get out,” Neil whined. He realized he was whining a lot more than normal but nobody was stopping him so he didn’t stop.

“Who’s telling you to?” Andrew asked in that same soft tone from before.

“No, but I wanna, like…,” Neil wasn’t sure his plans to cuddle would be tolerated.

“Lay down?” Andrew guessed. Fucking mindreader.

“Maybe,” Neil admitted. He didn’t wanna fully agree since that statement left out _who_ he’d be laying with. 

“I wanna be with you,” he said in a quiet voice, half-hoping Andrew didn’t hear him.

“You are,” Andrew said. Neil could hear the eye roll in his voice. 

“No, like-” Neil was caught off by a hand over his mouth. He then found himself being wrapped by warm arms, a face falling in his neck and sighing out deeply. He leaned towards the hug, not quite surprised at this point at the affection. He knew it was in part owed to the drugs but it still made him feel loved and, more importantly, trusted. And that was nice. 

“Now we’ll never leave,” he said, smiling. Andrew made a low noise of agreement. 

Neil picked his knees up and leaned them into Andrew as well. He knew Andrew wouldn’t love his feet on the nice seats but that wasn’t real right now. Plus, Neil knew, he would be the most likely exception to the rule. 

Andrew’s hugging him tighter in response was either confirmation of that or a warning. Either way, it made him smile more. He drifted off easily, his head free of any dreams, enjoying the surprisingly private empty car and the comfy leather seats. 

The first text to his phone woke him up but it was easy enough to ignore, as was the second. The ones to Andrew’s phone were a little harder. When someone started calling them both at the same time, the two finally separated with a groan. 

Predictably, it was their teammates, calling out of concern that wasn’t great enough to make them come check on them in person. 

“What?” Andrew said in answer to his caller. 

“Yeah,” he said bluntly before hanging up. He started stretching and Neil sighed. He waited one more moment before opening the door beside him, the sounds of a quiet night greeting him. It also definitely felt colder than in Andrew’s arms. 

He got out with a little more bounce than anticipated and turned to wait for Andrew, who gave him a bored look. Neil smiled at the effort. 

They sauntered back to their floor slowly and, in twice the amount of time it usually took, they were back at their room. Two heads looked away from the TV as they entered- Aaron, neutral and Nicky, amused. 

“Glad you made it,” Nicky smiled as the two ambled by to the kitchen, Andrew glaring at him in response. Neil smiled back, not finding it in him to frown. 

Andrew led the way, going to rummage through the cabinets whileNeil vied for the refrigerator. When he opened it, he stared for a while, not really sure what he was looking for as the cold air blew on and around his face. 

“Are you hungry?” Andrew asked, appearing at his side with a box of Cheez Itz. 

Neil thought about that. He felt like he could eat but digestion seemed like a _lot_ of work right now. He stood up and shut the fridge, shaking his head ‘no’. Andrew glanced between him and the fridge and then shrugged, moving to sit on one of the bar stools. 

Neil made his way across from him at the bar, more than a little disappointed that they weren’t going straight to the bed to cuddle. He leaned way over to lay his head on his arms. He guessed the car hugs would have to tie him over for now.

He moved his head so he could stare at Andrew, who was staring straight ahead as he steadily ate from the cardboard box. Neil thought his neck looked hot from this angle and, for the first time in a while (like an hour), started giggling again. He’d felt too tired for a bit but now he’d gotten used to the feeling and it just made him want to giggle _more_. 

This got Andrew to look down at him. He smiled a toothy grin and Andrew kept his blank look, which just made Neil giggle again.

“So, will you guys be doing this… the whole night? In various kitchens across the state?” Aaron asked. 

Neil brought his right hand up to lay his head on and focused his eyes towards the living room. “You’re the ones who asked us to come in,” he pointed out, though his giggle kept him from sounding accusatory. 

“That was an interesting choice,” Aaron muttered.

Before Neil could respond, Kevin walked into view with a towel around his waist. He stopped short when he saw Neil and Andrew and was gone just as quickly as he appeared. 

Neil stared at the empty space for a minute and then turned back to Andrew. He found the stool was empty- but a pinch on the butt answered any and all questions about the missing person’s whereabouts. Neil jumped at the feeling, unsurprised to find Andrew watching him boredly, leaning against the kitchen sink with his arms crossed. 

Neil planted a devilish look on his face and took a step towards him. “Can I help you?”

“No,” Andrew responded simply. 

Neil bit his cheek to stifle a laugh. “Well, maybe you can help me then,” he replied. He saw a flicker of something in Andrew’s eye. 

“I think someone who was just in here… kind of likes me.” He whispered the last part. 

Andrew’s expression didn’t waver. “Where would you get that kind of idea?” he said, no playful edge to his tone. Neil considered the fact that he could make a career in acting if he really wanted to. 

“I don’t know,” Neil shrugged, for some reason getting kind of competitive about making Andrew admit what they both knew. 

Andrew didn’t reply- verbally at least. They started having a conversation with their eyes once more. Maybe Aaron had a point about them and kitchens.

“Ugh.” 

They turned from each other and saw Kevin at the kitchen entrance again, now dressed in sweats. 

“Can you guys just go somewhere already and… take care of this? I just want… I just want a sandwich.”

Neil was gonna argue that nothing was stopping him but was being pulled away before he could. He saw Aaron standing up to leave as they passed into the hallway. 

Andrew closed their bedroom door behind them without turning on the light and pushed Neil so he was sitting on the bed. Neil watched as he dug around their dresser and threw a couple clothing pieces at him. 

Andrew moved to the space between the bunkbeds and the door, giving him some privacy, and Neil started changing, using the outside streetlights (...) as his light source. 

He smiled as he recognized the black long-sleeved shirt as Andrew’s (mostly by smell) and felt a stupid increase in his happiness once he had it on. The cotton pajama pants also felt unusually nice as he settled into the lower bed. 

Andrew reappeared after a bit with his own pajamas on. Neil was a tad disappointed that he didn’t have one of his shirts on, if he was being honest. He watched the slightly more tidy of the two of them as he collected their discarded clothes and threw them towards the corner to be dealt with later and then scooched over as Andrew joined him on the bed, both of them on top of the crumpled, unmade covers. 

They lay on their backs next to each other, shoulder to shoulder. Neil was giddy- he’d been waiting for this since thirty minutes ago. The fact that he got to wear Andrew’s shirt was just the cherry on top of the warm feeling. 

“Hey,” he said in a quiet voice. 

“Hm?”

“Why…,” Neil started, “why’d you give me your shirt to wear?”

Andrew was quiet for a second and Neil thought he fell asleep. 

“Because it makes you happy.” Neil smiled. “Like I said, you’re boring.”

Neil was glad he got to hear that answer, though that wasn’t exactly what he meant. “No,” he explained, “I mean… why didn’t you get one of my shirts for you?” He said this question quieter, realizing along the way that maybe this didn’t make Andrew as happy as it made him. 

Again, Andrew thought. He propped himself up on his arm, gazing down at Neil. Neil looked back up at him. 

“Because I’m not the bottom.”

Neil took a second to process the words but immediately rolled his eyes once he got it. Andrew cut through his annoyance by leaning down to kiss him.

It was over pretty soon, more romantic than anything else, and it was a new weight on Neil’s chest when Andrew laid his head on it and curled up against his side. But he thought he could get used to it.

~

Neil woke up the next morning feeling better rested than he had since… _ever_. Andrew was already gone from his side so he got up to find him, his mind still a bit foggy.

When he had the profile of the blonde drinking out of a mug and watching Tom and Jerry on their small couch in front of him, a small rush of memories from the previous night hit his mind that was slowly- much slower than usual, in fact- waking up. 

“Hey, it’s the other stoner! Good morning.” Nicky’s words sent his blush over the edge. 

He ignored them and crossed in front of the couch, sitting down on the far end so that a cushion sat between he and Andrew. He propped his elbow on the arm and tried to hide his face in his hand. Andrew seemed equally happy to ignore him for the time being. 

Kevin was silent at the counter and as he got up to answer a knock on the door. “What?” Neil heard him ask the visitor. He turned to see Matt’s spiked hair in the doorway, pushing through with a carton.

“Ooh, thanks!” Nicky said, rushing over to grab the milk. “We wanted to stop at the store on the way home but _some of us_ were not up to the task,” he said pointedly at the living room as he crossed back into the kitchen. 

“Oh shit, Aaron told me about that!” he took a couple small steps towards the living room, watching but not talking to Neil and Andrew. “I wish I got to see these two high on pot.”

“No you don’t,” Kevin grumbled over his cereal. 

“They were gross!” Nicky agreed, though he didn’t seem genuinely mad about it. 

Matt laughed, moving a bit closer to the sofa. “Is that true? How was it, Neil?” 

Neil looked at him, hoping he’d gotten his pink cheeks under control. This was harder to do when he now had Andrew’s pale face in his line of vision. He tried to look thoughtful, searching for a word that was both convincing and boring enough that the upperclassman would stop pressing him for details. 

He thought of Andrew’s small smiles throughout the night, his _big_ one, the cuddling in the car and the shirt he was still wearing. For a night he couldn’t remember all that well, he was sure he’d never forget it. 

“Boring,” was what he eventually decided on. He knew it was the right one when he caught the smirk on Andrew’s face.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading this fic I wrote to vicariously experience that which I cannot in quarantine


End file.
